In an environmentally-friendly and cost-saving move, City of Oakdale employees could soon be ridding greener thanks to a rebate program offered through the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District. The Oakdale Police Department is considering purchasing one or more electric scooters for short-distance trips within the city to avoid driving gas powered vehicles.

In a move likely to frustrate some local residents, Oakdale City Council members will not be discussing a lease agreement for the installation of a 70-foot cell phone tower at their Jan. 17 meeting as previously anticipated. The discussion was pushed to a later meeting, officials said, because of the longer than normal agenda for Jan. 17.

Upgrades and repairs to the Oakdale Wastewater Treatment Plant are finally complete, and Oakdale City Council members toured the completed facility on Monday, Jan. 9. The tour was considered a special meeting of the Oakdale City Council, but the council took no action during the session.

The Oakdale Chamber of Commerce has awarded Bill Dyer, a former Oakdale High School teacher, the former familiar face behind Community Sharing, and an overall volunteer extraordinaire the honor of Lifetime Achiever for his years of humble service with various causes, clubs, and organizations.

The Oakdale Irrigation District's Tuesday, Jan. 17 meeting agenda will contain an item related a possible "winter" irrigation, said OID General Manager Steve Knell. He said that OID has had a number of inquiries about having an irrigation rotation due to the lack of rainfall but that the decision is up to the board of directors.

Oakdale City Council will hold a special meeting on Monday, Jan. 9 at the Oakdale Wastewater Treatment Plant. Council and members of the public will take a tour of the facility to view progress on plant upgrades.

A swift-running river, bad news for schools in terms of state funding, and an increase in gang activity all found their way on to the front pages of The Leader during the latter half of 2011. Following are some of the top stories, July to December.

Jaden Mayfield was doing what probably any two-year-old boy would do one afternoon when he found something shiny …he put it in his mouth. Little did he or his family know that his age-appropriate curiosity would turn into a long hospital stay.

The New Year brings fresh opportunity and challenges for most people but it also brings new laws for everyone to abide by. More than 800 laws will go into effect. Some laws directly affect your day-to-day, others not so much, but it's a good idea to know what's legal and what's not. Here is a small list of some of the more talked-about laws that will go into effect.

Although the list posted at the Sears Holding Company website is still not completely updated, the Oakdale Kmart and Sears locations seem to have escaped the chopping block as they are not among the 80 stores slated for closure throughout the country.

Oakdale city officials are scrambling to action after the California Supreme Court upheld the state's right to dismantle redevelopment agencies across the state in a Dec. 29 decision. The Supreme Court also ruled that an alternate strategy, which some were calling "ransom payments," was unconstitutional. This decision leaves the City of Oakdale scrambling to meet a four-month deadline to ensure repayment of around $1.5 million owed by the RDA to city held funds.

Several Orange Blossom 4-H club members, in contributed photo at side, made approximately 110 scarves in December to contribute to the Oakdale Police Department's senior outreach program coordinated by CAPS (Citizens Auxiliary Police Services) member Lupe Aguilera.